TBATE - Lightseeker

I walked back the way I came, remembering to pick up the Magma Troll's mana core. I have two mana beast cores now. Should I take the mana from them for myself, or try and sell them?  After a while of walking, I made it back to the entrance of the dungeon. Including the time spent walking, resting and fighting, I suspect it had been at least half a day. Walking out of the dungeon, I gazed at the night sky, the silver full moon gazing back. Midnight already, huh? I must have been down there for close to 12 hours. With nowhere safe to sleep, I lay down in some shrubbery near the cave mouth. I could walk back to the Garden, but I run the risk of finding folks who aren't as friendly as I am. I'd rather not draw attention to myself, either. This will have to do.  

....

I woke up with a yawn, the morning Sun greeting me warmly. Time to move. I walked away from the dungeon, taking out my map from my ring. "Looks like there's an outpost not too far from here," I said to no one in particular. "Guess I'll head there." 

....

On a bright sunny morning, an ordinary-looking - though rather large - deep green feathered bird could vaguely be seen perching on a branch. "Hmm... He's definitely stronger than when he first entered... Maybe that old bastard, Lumen, was right about him." The 'ordinary' bird chuckled to himself lightly, then flew from the branch into the distance.

....

As I walked into the small inn, with a large 'OUTPOST' sign above the double swinging doors, all eyes turned to me, before resuming their conversation or reading dismissing me as a random lost child, which in all fairness, I am. I walked up to the main reception which served as both a food ordering table and a desk for adventuring enquiries. "Hello, young man, how can I help you?" I middle-aged man with thin, pushed-backed brown hair and light blue eyes, dressed in a simple white shirt with a small leather breastplate covering his chest, asked me.

"I'd like to sell two mana beast cores. Two B-class', please." 

"Oh? And where did you get those B-class cores from?" He responded in a joking, but undeniably sceptical tone. "I doubt a kid like you could have gotten them."

"What if I said I did get them myself?" I challenged. 

"Wouldn't believe ya." He stated flatly. We both stared at each other for a few blinks before he relented. "Well, you don't seem like you're gonna tell me. Show me the cores."

I took the molten cores out of my ring and placed it in his open palm. "Alright. Wait here, I'll go get your cash." He walked off through a door to the back room. I took a catalogue from the counter, sat at the closest table to the desk and browsed their wares. Shields would be useless since I can just conjure one... Swords - definitely don't need those - and other various items any good adventurer would need. I have no armour... should I invest in some light mana beast skin gear? I should get a mask too. Ooh, custom masks! "Here ya go kid. 40 Gold and 7 Silver for the first core and 28 gold for the second. The first had much more mana in it than the second, almost as much mana as an A-class core so it's worth more." He handed me a small sack with my newly acquired wealth. "How much is a room at this inn?" I questioned.

"5 Silver a night, a simple meal of meat soup, a thick slice of bread and some ale, or water in your case, is an additional 3 Silver." He responded.

"Can you convert 5 of these Gold coins into silver?" I'll need some silver for staying here.

"Sure thing kid, 1 Gold is 10 Silver. Here are 50 Silver coins." He took the 5 Gold coins from my hand and poured the 50 small pieces of silver into my sack. I threw the sack into my dimension ring. "Thank you," I said politely before turning and leaving through the double doors. I again opened my map and checked for the closest dungeon. A B-lass dungeon, roughly a two-hour hike from here. I looked up and to my right. That way it is, I guess. 

...

After roughly an hour of trekking through the bushes, I came across a gorgeous clearing. A deep, clear lake sat in the centre, small natural rock forms surrounding it. I walked up the the lake, dipped my hands in the water and drank from the pond. Now that I think about it, I haven't felt hungry, thirsty, or needed to use the restroom at all since I gained my Radiant Heart... Does it have something to do with that? Am I subconsciously photosynthesising?! If I remember correctly from Master Lumen's teaching, plants use light for nutrients, so I guess it makes sense for me to do the same if I have the Heart of the Sun. I walked from the lake and stood in front of a large rock, and began to use it as a dummy. I manifested small, golden butterflies from thin air and willed them to the rock. They exploded in a flash of light and destroyed small chunks of the large rock. At the moment, I can't make anything larger than that, but it is a good first step! It is proof that it is possible to make something larger!  I spent the next 3 or so hours practising mana manipulation, changing the shape and size of my light and flames. I tried inspecting the runes in my Radiant Heart fruitlessly. It seems the only time they will react is if I mana directly into them. Should I just do it now? But Master did say to do it only when necessary... Hah, guess I'll just leave then. 

I stood up and left the clearing in the forest and ventured back into the thick bush.

After another hour or so of walking, the dungeon entrance came into view. I walked to the cave mouth, pulled up the hood of my cloak over my head, and walked in. The first floor was essentially empty aside from a few strange flying creatures with long limbs. My exploding butterflies made light work of them. Floors 2 and 3 consisted of small spiders with legs made of ice that could shatter their own limbs into ice shards and send them to their target. I hate spiders.  The fourth floor was where it got interesting. The floor was covered in a thin sheet of ice with stalactites and stalagmites growing from the roof and floor of the cave. The temperature couldn't have been more than 5 degrees, my Sun mana providing me with warmth as I navigated through the sharp icicles. In the middle of the floor, in an area free of stalactites and stalagmites, a large spider slept. The spider was large with sharp ice shards on its back. The black spider had specs of light blue on its limbs and abdomen. I wonder if I can just sneak past it... I crept up to the side of the slumbering spider, trying to make as little noise as possible, until I stepped on a small block of ice. The ice cracked underneath my foot, and the spider's numerous eyes all looked dead at me. You're kidding right!?" 

The spider stood, its thin legs barely keeping its thick abdomen steady. Its hundreds of little eyes looking at me like a predator to its prey. Sh*ttt. I ran to cover behind a thick stalagmite. The spider shot thick ice shards at my cover, tearing through it and leaving large holes where it made contact. The stalagmite shattered halfway up and I looked up at the spider, now standing right behind the ice formation. Its eyes stared down at me, waiting for me to either give up or do something. I rolled forward away from the spider and sent my golden butterflies at its eyes. They exploded, destroying many of the spider's eyes and spewing cold blood in every direction. I conjured a flaming longsword in my hands and slashed at the spider's legs, cleanly slicing through the first set. The spider's front fell to the floor, before reforming its front legs out of ice and standing up again. Maybe the ice shards on its back are a weak point. I dashed to a nearby stalagmite, ran up it and jumped backwards towards the spider, backflipping midair so that I was looking down on its back. I presented my palm and almost 20 daggers of white fire formed in front of me before falling down into the spider's back.

The ice shards cracked and tiny spiders spilled out by the hundreds. They were eggs!? Dammit! The new baby spiders entered the fray and ran at me with reckless abandon. I sucked in a deep breath of air, filling my lungs, before spewing a wave of white fire at the incoming baby ice spiders. The flames caught the spiders and melted them instantly. I conjured a staff of light in my hand and waved it around the cave sending small fireballs around me, mopping up the remaining baby spiders and melting the nearby ice. Running along the ground with my newfound traction, I looked around the cave in search of the mother spider. Where is it...  The spider had hidden itself among the stalactites and ice formations. Cold saliva dripped onto my cloak. "What the fu..." Looking up I saw the mother spider hanging from a frozen thread from the ceiling, not even 2 metres above me with its small mouth wide open. "Oh sh*t!" I dashed to the side, narrowly avoiding its outstretched legs attempting to grab me. It's within range!"  I conjured spears of flame around my silhouette and sent them flying at the spider, digging into its cold blue and black flesh and setting it ablaze. As the spider fell, I genuflected and placed both of my palms on the ground, channelling manga under the ice. A large double helix branch of solid and sharp light appeared from under the ice and pierced the falling spider. It let out a pained wail and I walked up to it, taking my Claymore out of my ring, bringing the longsword above my head and decapitating the mana beast.

Taking a moment to collect myself, I extended my arms and with a low voice, exclaimed, "Praise the Sun." Immediately a golden ring formed above the deceased spider and shot a purifying beam and its corpse, speeding up its decomposition and revealing its blue core, cold to the touch.